Untitled
by starzee
Summary: Damon didn't know how to show Alaric that he really did care about him... Damon/Stefan brother bonding included.
1. Chapter 1

I don't own The Vampire Diaries.

A/N: I'm not sure if I'm going to expand on this yet but at this point, it's a one shot.

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><p><strong>Untitled<strong>

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><p>Damon didn't know what compelled him to do it. But he did it – and he got punched in the jaw. Hard, by the way. He was sure he heard a crack.<p>

Since Klaus died, he and Ric had been hunting hybrids. They'd been travelling all over the country to do it. They caught the hybrids, drained their blood for future cure storage then killed them. Easy-peasy. Except this time it wasn't easy. This time the hybrid fed on Ric. Damn near killed him – and Damon had felt an intense panic and worry and when they got back to their motel Damon had been ranting and raving at Alaric to be more careful.

Ric offered a witty and sardonic quip about how ironic it was that Damon would be concerned when he'd personally killed Ric twice. Damon had been furious and wanted to show that he cared so – he didn't know what compelled him to do it, but he grabbed Ric's face and kissed him. Ric responded by punching Damon square in the jaw, then turning on his heel and slamming his motel room door after he went inside.

Damon didn't bother saying goodbye when he grabbed his stuff and left.

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><p>Ric was furious at Damon for doing that. Ric felt like everything was just a game to Damon. He figured that Damon had just come up with a new way to amuse himself. Ric hardly slept he was so angry. When morning came, he knew he was going to have to talk to Damon and tell him that he can't just kiss his friends for his own amusement. Ric left his room then knocked on the motel room door next to his – there was no answer. Ric tried the door and was surprised that it opened – the room was empty. No Damon. No bags. Nothing.<p>

He went over to his car in the parking lot and was shocked to find that all of Damon's stuff was gone. Ric's jaw dropped – he realised in that moment that it probably wasn't a game... he realised that he'd rejected the vampire... he realised that he'd probably hurt him... he sighed in annoyance because it finally clicked. Damon had been worried about him, had given him a rant because Damon didn't want to lose him, he'd kissed him when Ric basically made a comment stating he didn't think Damon cared... And Ric punched him in return.

"Crap." Ric muttered.

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><p>Damon stole a car and drove back to Mystic Falls. He ditched it about half an hour away so he wouldn't get the blame for that then ran the rest of the way. He dumped his bags in the boarding house but didn't unpack considering he planned to just take off again to go hunt another hybrid – he was going to <em>have <em>to kill something in the mood he was in. It was early morning by the time he got back and he went straight over to Bonnie's house and knocked on the door. She appeared a few minutes later in a robe and had that 'just woken up' look with her dishevelled hair and sleepy eyes. She opened the door and looked surprised to see Damon standing there.

"What happened?" She asked immediately.

"Want to go hybrid hunting?" He asked her curiously and her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. She'd been sure that Damon and Ric were on a hunt already...

"What?" She asked confused.

"The one in Pittsburgh is dead so since you don't have school anymore, want to go hybrid hunting?" He asked her again.

"I thought you were hunting them with Ric?" She asked and Damon scowled at nothing in particular.

"No, not anymore." Damon replied and Bonnie looked visibly surprised at Damon's reply.

"Why? Did you kill him again?" Bonnie asked and Damon glared at her.

"No, of course not." Damon replied annoyed.

"Then why?" She asked.

"Because I hate him." He said shocking Bonnie. "Now, do you want to go hunting with me or not? You track, I drain and kill. Easy-peasy." He said and Bonnie still looked visibly confused at the entire interaction.

"Why do you hate him now?" Bonnie asked sceptically and Damon crossed his arms over his chest.

"I just do." He said irritated and Bonnie sighed. She saw that Damon looked furious and that didn't bode well for anyone in his way. She figured that keeping an eye on him might not be such a bad idea.

"Fine, I'll go hunting with you." Bonnie nodded. "But not right this second considering it's 5am. Come back at 10am." Bonnie said then went into the house and closed the door before Damon could comment. He just rolled his eyes and went back to the boarding house to sulk.

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><p>Ric was sitting in a diner just before 9.30am getting some coffee and breakfast when his phone rang. He was kind of surprised to see Bonnie calling him.<p>

"Hey, Bonnie." He answered.

"_Hey. Uh... where are you?_" She asked curiously.

"On my way back. I left Pittsburgh like three hours ago." Ric replied.

"_Then how did Damon get back if you have your car?_" Bonnie asked and Ric's stomach clenched.

"He's in Mystic Falls?" Ric asked quietly and a little sadly.

"_What happened? He turned up at my house at 5am asking if I want to go hybrid hunting with him._" Bonnie said and Ric's eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

"This is bad." Ric muttered quietly to himself knowing this wasn't going to be easy to fix.

"_Did you have a fight or something?_" Bonnie asked confused.

"Did you ask him why he doesn't want to hunt with me anymore?" Ric asked her though he didn't want to know the answer.

"_Yeah._" Bonnie said hesitantly and Ric knew he was going to regret asking...

"And?" Ric asked.

"_He said he hates you._" Bonnie replied and Ric felt his heart wrench a little at that.

"He did?" Ric asked in a whisper.

"_Ric, what happened? I asked him if he killed you again and he was like __**really **__mad at me asking that._" Bonnie said and Ric closed his eyes knowing that was probably the worst thing she could have asked.

"We just had an argument. I'll talk to him. Any chance you could try to keep him in Mystic Falls just for a few more hours until I get back?" Ric asked.

"_Yeah, okay, I'll try._" Bonnie replied.

"Bonnie, can you not tell anyone about this?" Ric asked her seriously.

"_I won't._" She replied softly.

"Thanks." Ric said sincerely.

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><p>Bonnie made an excuse to Damon about needing to go see Lucy for a spell that could help – really she had the spell already, she just needed to buy Ric time to get back. Damon reluctantly agreed then went back to the boarding house to wait for her considering he really didn't want to go see yet <em>another <em>Bennett witch.

She called in the afternoon and Damon put his bags in the car then drove over to her house. He parked his car in the driveway, honked the horn then got out of the car and leaned against the side while he waited for her. He heard the door open and he turned around and saw Bonnie then seconds later Ric stepped out the front door and looked at Damon.

Damon was hit with the realisation then that Bonnie had lied about going to see Lucy and had just been stalling him for Ric. That made Damon furiously angry. Before either of them could say anything, Damon cocked an eyebrow and stared at Bonnie with what could only be described as a deadly expression.

"Well, well, well. Yet another traitor in the Bennett line." Damon said and Bonnie looked shocked that he was so angry at her. "You know, Bonnie, if you wanted to make an enemy out of me, all you had to do was say so." He said to her darkly and a wave of fear flashed through her as he looked truly dangerous in that moment. Ric was shocked at how much fury was displayed all over his face but both he and Bonnie were too stunned to say anything. Damon didn't say anything else and instead opted to jump back behind the wheel, reversed down the drive way then sped away down the street.

"What on earth happened, Ric? What could possibly have made Damon _that _angry?" Bonnie asked him shocked. Ric was feeling pretty confused himself at that point.

"We need to call Stefan. I've never seen Damon so furious before. Stefan might know what to do." Ric said nervously ignoring her question. He didn't think any good would come from blabbing that Damon kissed him.

"Definitely. He'll kill people in this mood." Bonnie said worriedly.

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><p>Stefan entered the boarding house to find the living room completely trashed. The bookcases were smashed to pieces, the couches were irreparable and there was broken glass <em>everywhere<em>. He knew Damon had a habit of breaking things when losing his temper but for the room to be _this _badly damaged, his brother was clearly murderously livid. He silently went upstairs and down the hall and found Damon's bedroom door lying smashed on the ground, he walked into the room and every piece of furniture was broken. Stefan was now beyond worried about Damon. He'd never seen his brother so livid that he would go this insane in a bout of temper.

"What, Stefan?" He heard Damon ask annoyed. Stefan hesitantly went into the bathroom and found Damon sitting on the ground leaning against the wall drinking out of a bottle of whiskey.

"Damon, what happened?" Stefan asked him concerned.

"I can't do it anymore." Damon replied in a daze and Stefan was now terrified that Damon was on the verge of meeting the sun. He saw the faraway look in his eyes and Stefan knew that Damon was losing it. He sat down in front of him and watched him carefully.

"You can't do what?" Stefan asked him softly.

"I had my emotions off for nearly a century and a half, Stefan." Damon said without looking him in the eyes. "All the kills and things I did... they're catching up with me now." He said unevenly and Stefan shot him an understanding look. "I can't stay in this town anymore. They're all traitors. I can't trust anyone." Damon said looking down at his bottle.

"You can trust _me_." Stefan said and Damon nodded.

"Can I, Stef?" Damon asked finally looking at him in the eye and Stefan saw his defeated look. Stefan knew Damon couldn't take it anymore. Stefan knew he had to help his brother or he was going to lose him forever and that just wasn't acceptable.

"I swear I'll never do anything to break your trust ever again." Stefan promised and Damon nodded again.

"I won't do it to you either." Damon replied.

"Let's leave town, Damon." Stefan said knowing it might be the only way to help him.

"Together?" Damon asked surprised.

"Don't you think it's about time we fix this?" Stefan motioned between them and Damon nodded. "What set this off?" Stefan asked him concerned.

"It's a long story." Damon muttered.

"Not getting any older." Stefan smirked and Damon rolled his eyes amused.

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><p>Damon told Stefan about how one of his biggest regrets was snapping Ric's neck and how it haunted him. How he'd never meant to do that. He'd just been so overloaded with everything, there was so much pressure, he missed Stefan, he was worried about Stefan, Elena was making his life hell insinuating Damon didn't care about Stefan, his emotions being fully on and making him unstable – he'd just snapped and Ric was never going to forgive him.<p>

Damon didn't know how to make it better. He didn't know how to fix it. He didn't know why Ric bothered being friends with him if he hated him so much. He told Stefan he'd been so worried about Ric when the hybrid attacked him, he'd killed the hybrid without draining him just so Ric wouldn't be hurt. He told Stefan how he told Ric to be more careful, he told him about Ric thinking Damon didn't give a crap, he told Stefan about his stupid exasperated decision to kiss Ric – he told Stefan how Ric punched him and looked at him like he was so disappointed in him and he couldn't take it so he left. He told Stefan about Bonnie.

To say the least, Stefan wasn't all that surprised about the Ric dilemma. Stefan saw that Damon had a strange attachment to the teacher. Stefan knew it wasn't just friendship but he saw that his brother was clueless as to why he'd kissed the teacher so Stefan decided not to push him. Stefan thought Damon was overreacting about Bonnie but he knew that Damon saw it as a betrayal and now hated the witch and since Stefan had decided to be 'Team Damon', he knew he had to outwardly feel the same towards Bonnie or Damon would think Stefan was taking sides against him and Stefan never wanted to be on bad terms with Damon again so he had to make that sacrifice.

"So let's leave them all behind and start fresh somewhere new." Stefan said sincerely and Damon looked at him with curiosity.

"You want to leave _all _of them behind?" Damon asked.

"Well, we need to give Caroline a way to contact us but other than that yes, _all_." Stefan nodded knowing he meant Elena.

"I've already talked to Blondie." Damon replied and Stefan looked confused.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"I mean I was going to leave as soon as Klaus was dead but because of the hybrids I didn't. She already has my emergency number and knows not to tell anyone else she has it or that she can contact me." Damon replied and Stefan looked surprised. "I'm her sire, after all. I owe her that at the very least." He said and Stefan nodded.

"Then let's go." Stefan replied.

"I'm never coming back to this town ever again, Stefan." Damon warned.

"Me neither." Stefan replied.

"What about the boarding house?" Damon asked.

"Let's burn it down." Stefan suggested and Damon smirked at him amused.

"Saint Stefan is suggesting some pyromania? I like it." Damon replied and Stefan chuckled and rolled his eyes.

"You go get tons of gasoline and I'll pack up all the valuables and important stuff." Stefan replied. "Since you broke your room, you don't have any in here." He said and Damon rolled his eyes.

"Alright. What about after?" He asked.

"There're only two hybrids left right?" Stefan asked and Damon nodded. "So, let's go drain them and kill them then go buy a house somewhere and just... relax and have some fun for a while." He said and Damon gave him a real smile.

"I like it." Damon agreed.

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><p>Damon returned an hour later and his car was full of canisters of gasoline. He towed them into the house and Stefan had already put all of their stuff and the coolers full of the drained hybrid blood on the drive way ready to get packed up. They filled their two cars with the stuff from the driveway and both of their cars were stuffed with their belongings from over the years.<p>

The two of them poured the gasoline all over the house then went outside. They didn't know that Bonnie and Ric were watching from a distance. They saw the two vampires holding bottles of alcohol with cloths tucked into them. Damon pulled out a lighter and set his alight then Stefan's and Bonnie and Ric were shocked at what they were about to do.

"Ready?" Stefan grinned at Damon who smirked then launched his bottle through one of the windows then Stefan laughed and did the same to another window. Seconds later Bonnie and Ric saw the flames rising and Damon and Stefan just stood watching with amusement written all over their faces. Ric and Bonnie were shocked at just how quickly the fire was spreading throughout the house then they spotted the empty gasoline canisters at the garbage can and finally understood the cause. They _didn't _understand why Stefan and Damon were burning down the boarding house though considering it was enormous and worth a fortune. After about ten minutes the house was ablaze and Damon turned to Stefan with a smirk.

"See you in Nashville?" Damon asked and Stefan smiled and nodded.

"What hotel?" He asked.

"The Downtown Hilton." Damon replied.

"Alright, I'll see you at the bar." Stefan smiled.

"At the bar." Damon agreed then patted Stefan on the shoulder got into his car and drove away. Stefan stood watching the house for another minute. He hated the boarding house. He always had. He was happy to see it burn. There were so many bad memories in that house and he was looking forward to an eternity without it.

"Stefan?" He heard in the distance then turned around and saw Bonnie and Alaric appearing from the tree line. He instantly looked down the road and saw Damon was long gone.

"What are you doing here?" Stefan asked them as they approached.

"What the hell are you doing?" Ric asked pointing to the house and Stefan sighed.

"This place holds bad memories for both Damon and me." He replied.

"Then you sell it, you don't burn it down." Bonnie said like it was obvious.

"We can't sell it, Bonnie. Have you got _any _idea how many people have died in that house? If a forensic team ever went through the house, they could find blood DNA from hundreds of people." He said and Bonnie and Ric finally saw his point.

"Where did Damon go?" Ric asked.

"We're leaving town." Stefan replied and they both looked shocked.

"To hunt hybrids?" Ric asked.

"No. Permanently." Stefan said.

"Why?" Ric asked in disbelief.

"I need to take care of my brother." Stefan replied and Bonnie looked confused and Ric looked worried.

"What happened?" Bonnie asked softly and Stefan sighed.

"Turning your emotions off as a vampire makes you a monster, Bonnie. Coming back from that is the worst thing anyone could ever endure because it's not _you _driving the controls of your own body but it's your hands that kill everyone and you remember every single one of them. Coming back from that after a century and a half of never feeling _anything_, made Damon unstable and it's all hitting him. Every death. Everything he did. He can't cope and I'm not going to sit back and watch my brother spiral into so much misery that he meets the sun. I can't live without him and he wants to leave. So we're leaving." Stefan said and Ric looked so guilty and Bonnie looked saddened. Stefan turned to Ric then. "You have no idea how much he regrets snapping your neck. It's not an excuse but he didn't mean to do that." He said and Ric gulped. "But neither of you have anything to worry about. Damon will never come back to this town or have contact with anyone here. He's gone for good, Bonnie." Stefan told her reassuringly.

"He won't even talk to me. I've tried calling him like a million times." Ric said just as Stefan got his driver's side door open and Stefan looked up at him confused.

"He got the message loud and clear, Ric." Stefan said and Ric looked a bit stunned that Damon told him what happened. "You all think he's unfeeling and doesn't care because he doesn't remember how to show that he cares. He doesn't understand things like that anymore. He doesn't always recognise what he feels because it was such a long time ago that he felt everything. He was only trying to make you understand how important you were to him. But don't worry; he'll never bother either of you ever again." Stefan said then got into his car while Bonnie and Ric gaped at him. Stefan started the car then drove away before they could reply.

"Ric, we need to get out of here or the cops will think _we _did it." Bonnie said and Ric nodded absently while he tried to process the fact that... Damon was gone forever.


	2. Chapter 2

I don't own The Vampire Diaries.

A/N: I kind of lost my Damon/Alaric muse for a while but reading the latest from dutchessofdisaster inspired it again :) Hope you like :D

There isn't any Stefan in this chapter but there will be some Damon/Stefan bonding for those of you who liked that ;)

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><p>Untitled<p>

Chapter 2

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><p>The burned down boarding house drew quite a crowd. Ric stood behind the police lines along with Elena, Bonnie, Caroline, Matt, Jeremy and half of Mystic Falls. Ric had been numb for the past day since Damon left. He'd just been drinking. The crowd whispered wondering if the brothers would be inside – dead. Wondering who could do such a vile thing to such a beautiful property. Ric wanted to scream. Pull his hair out. Punch people. Drink. Fight. But he didn't. He just stood there in silence, repressing what he felt.<p>

Soon, Ric couldn't take it anymore. Debris from the house was being carted out. The blackened broken furniture was making Ric's heart clench. He overhead the officers saying that the furniture had been broken _before _the fire – Ric knew that it could only have been Damon. He'd lost it. Ric felt like an idiot. He was never going to find anyone like Damon ever again.

So, without a word, he turned on his heel and walked away from the police lines without looking back. He saw Elena's gaze follow him but she saw his expression and didn't comment. He walked and walked and too soon he arrived at his apartment. He let himself inside – feeling like an empty shell – grabbed a bottle of his dwindling stock and took a seat on his couch.

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><p>Two weeks passed and nobody had heard from Ric. Elena tried to visit him but he didn't answer the door. Ric hadn't been in school for the summer school programme, hadn't called in sick – he just didn't show up. Elena was worried so Bonnie said that she would try. She went to his door and magically opened it – she was worried that something had happened to him so she wasn't concerned with his privacy. She twisted the knob and opened the door and her eyes widened a little at the sight. The living room floor was <em>covered <em>in empty alcohol bottles. Ric was slumped on the couch still wearing what he'd worn on the day they were outside the boarding house. He practically had a beard too. He looked up at Bonnie and she saw that he was still well and truly drunk.

"What are you doing here?" Ric slurred confused. She closed the door then navigated her way to the couch and she sat down about a foot away from him – she wasn't trying to be insensitive but the smell was _ghastly_.

"We've all been worried about you, Ric. You haven't gone to work or talked to anyone in two weeks." She stated and Ric looked marginally surprised.

"Two weeks? That's all? Feels like months." He murmured to himself as he took another swig from his current bottle.

"You're going to kill yourself with this much alcohol." Bonnie commented.

"I don't care." Ric muttered and she looked at him sadly.

"You miss Damon." She commented and he sighed.

"No, Bonnie. I don't miss Damon." He replied. "I'm lost _without _Damon." He admitted and she tried to school her features so that it wouldn't show her shock.

"You love him." She said softly in understanding and his eyes closed and he took a long breath.

"Yeah." He choked.

"What happened, Ric? Why did he leave like that?" She asked him and he didn't say anything. "I give you my word that it won't leave this room." She promised. His hand shook from the amount of damage he'd been doing to his system from alcohol abuse as he stretched it out for her. She understood the gesture. He wanted her to read him. She carefully took his hand and closed her eyes as she saw the memories that he wanted to show her. She saw _everything_.

From the first time they had a drink in the apartment they thought Isobel would be in, the time Ric punched Damon at the Grill, their drinking sessions, she felt the gradual change in Ric's emotions. He'd at first feared Damon a great deal but that was displaced quickly with irritation. Damon had gotten under his skin fairly quickly after that. The gradual change went from irritation to fondness to friendship to shocked attraction to feelings then jealously over Elena then the ultimate betrayal and hurt when Damon snapped his neck. She felt how much Ric had missed him when he was avoiding Damon after that.

Bonnie was kind of shocked watching the memories as she'd never seen Damon interact with someone like that. Damon _clearly _cared about Ric. She thought that it was ridiculously obvious. She saw how Ric's feelings deepened when they started hunting hybrids together as they had such a fun time drinking and bantering. She felt how Ric had fallen in love with the vampire – so deeply that it terrified him.

She saw the day that Damon saw him get attacked by the hybrid, she saw the _horror _written all over Damon's face, how he'd reacted instantly to protect Ric, she saw how Damon had nagged at him for well over an hour about being more careful until Ric made a snarky remark about how Damon didn't care considering he'd personally killed Ric twice. She saw the hurt that graced Damon's face at that comment. She was shocked when she saw the memory of Damon planting a kiss on him. Even more shocked that Ric full on punched him in the jaw for that – then she saw the utter hurt, anguish and rejection all over the vampire's face.

She felt Ric's reaction to the kiss – he was devastated because he thought that Damon had discovered his feelings and was mocking him for them. He'd barely slept a wink because he'd been crushed. Bonnie felt the regret, horror and shock that Ric felt when he discovered that Damon was gone. She felt how desolate and lost Ric had been since Damon and Stefan left Mystic Falls. She felt Stefan's words cut through him like a knife. Bonnie felt that Ric was shattered – and it broke her heart.

She moved closer to him and hugged him tightly. He was still thoroughly drunk so it hadn't really registered with him just how much he'd just revealed to Bonnie. He hugged her back and Bonnie heard the tiniest sniff and she knew the teacher was trying his best to keep his emotions in check.

"It'll be okay, Ric. Go to bed and sleep it off. I'll come back in a few hours with some coffee and food and we'll think up a plan." She soothed.

"You heard Stefan, Bonnie." He reminded her heavily. "Damon's never going to talk to me again."

"We'll see." She replied.

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><p>Bonnie helped Alaric to bed and he passed out almost instantly. She picked up the bottles and put them in the trash, but that was soon overflowing so she opened another trash bag and filled that too then she left the apartment and dumped the bags in the apartment dumpster. She'd managed to swipe a knife that she knew was Damon's – she needed a private belonging after all.<p>

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><p>Bonnie returned that evening with homemade lasagne and potatoes hoping to get a bunch of carbohydrates into the teacher. She knocked on the door and about a minute later, Ric appeared still looking dishevelled and he was holding his head.<p>

"Hey." He groaned as he remembered showing her what he'd showed her.

"I brought you dinner and a solution." She smiled.

"Thanks, Bonnie, that's really nice of you but I'm not really hungry." He murmured and she cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Am I going to have to magically make you eat?" She asked and his lip twitched into a small smile.

"Come in." He sighed and she smiled and went inside.

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><p>Ric had a quick shower but didn't bother shaving while Bonnie heated the food then set it out on two plates. She wasn't going to make him eat alone. He sat down and took a bit gulp of the glass of water she'd left for him – to bring his hydration up.<p>

"I'm sorry about earlier." He grumbled as he took a bite.

"Damon's in Wisconsin." Bonnie revealed and Ric froze with a fork half way to his mouth.

"How do you that?" Ric asked her a little wide-eyed.

"I did a locator spell on him." She replied and Ric looked like he was thinking that over.

"If I go, he won't talk to me. He'll just vampire speed away. He never listens to me." Ric muttered and Bonnie sighed.

"Good thing I'm going with you then, huh?" She smirked and he looked a little embarrassed.

"Bonnie… uh… it's kind of awkward." He confessed and she gave him a small smile.

"Ric, I genuinely believe that you deserve someone wonderful in your life. You're brave and kind and good while still being flawed enough that the other things aren't annoying." She smirked and he chuckled at that. "I think you deserve a life, a real life away from vampires, someone kind who would be good to you…" She explained with a smile and he looked confused. "But the heart wants what the heart wants. You can't help who you fall for. Lucky for you, you have a ring that will bring you back to life when Damon's being a fucktard." She quipped and he laughed at that and the fact Bonnie _swore_. "I can take Damon." She promised him. "I'll make him listen to you. The only thing that you need to be prepared for, is that he might not respond in the way you want him to." She cautioned and he gulped. "But at least, if you get it out there, if he doesn't feel the same way, you can move on." She said and he nodded though he doubted very much that he _could_.

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><p>Three days later, they arrived into Cumberland Municipal Airport in Wisconsin. It was the closest airport to Bear Lake where Damon was. They checked into the Cumberland Inn &amp; Suites hotel then Bonnie set to work on a more accurate locator spell now that she was in the nearby area. She did Damon first and saw that his location was at an address in Bear Lake then she did Stefan and saw that he was several miles away from there in Edgewater which worked out perfectly for her. Ric went to have a shower as he was nervous as hell and was sweating like a fiend – Bonnie thought it was the perfect excuse to go on ahead without him and have a little chat with the raven-haired vampire.<p>

They'd gotten a rental car so she slipped into it and drove the couple of miles towards the location of the house. She covered herself in a protection spell, not sure what kind of mental state she would find the vampire in. She parked the car at the end of the dirt road leading to the lake house Damon was supposedly at.

She got out and walked as silently as she could up the path then in the distance she spotted a small lake house on the edge of the water with dark green walls and white windows with a small decking area – she saw said vampire lounging in a chair staring out at the water. She focused and dampened Damon's hearing so that she could get closer without him hearing her then when she was a few feet away – she magically tossed him up against the wall of the house and held her hand out to pin him there.

Damon stared at her with surprise and a flash of fury crossed his face.

"What the hell are you doing here, witch?" Damon asked angrily still unable to move as she neared him. Bonnie stayed calm so that her concentration wouldn't break.

"I need to talk to you." She answered airily like it was normal to hunt a vampire down then magically pin him to the wall.

"Then why hell am I pinned to the wall?" He exclaimed and she shrugged.

"For two reasons." She replied. "First, the last time you spoke to me you said that I'd made an enemy out of you so I figured I'd be safer." She clarified and he shot her a look for presuming he'd hurt her. "Second, because I doubt you're going to want to talk to me about what I want to talk to you about." She confessed and he sighed in annoyance.

"Can you just make your point already?" He muttered. "This isn't comfortable." He complained.

"If you prefer." She nodded. "You need to talk to Ric." She pushed and he all out scowled at her.

"I do _not _need to talk to, Ric." He retorted.

"I thought you cared about him." She said and he glared at her.

"No, I told you I hate him." He pointed out and she nodded.

"Mmhmm." She agreed. "You did." She added. "Do you hate him because he punched you or because of something else?" She asked and Damon's eyes widened.

"He told you." Damon stated flatly.

"No, not exactly. He was drunk out of his mind and he let me read his hand." Bonnie disagreed.

"What are you doing here?" Damon seethed. "What was the point in this?" He yelled at her.

"The point is you need to talk to him." She countered.

"There's nothing to talk about." He retorted.

"Were you just fucking with him, Damon?" She asked him sadly. "Were you mocking him when you kissed him?" She asked and Damon looked at her confused.

"What?" He asked not understanding.

"Oh for God's sake, you ass!" She exclaimed annoyed unable to keep her cool any longer when he was being such an idiot. "You have vampire hearing. I know you heard me." She exclaimed.

"I heard you but I don't get what you're alluding to." He retorted just as irritated with the witch.

"What I am asking you, Damon, is if you knew how he felt about you and kissed him to mock that." She clarified and Damon's jaw fell open.

"What do you mean how he felt about me?" Damon asked ridiculously confused and Bonnie looked at him in contemplation. She saw that Damon clearly didn't know that the teacher had feelings for him.

"So you weren't mocking him." She tested.

"No, of course not!" He exclaimed annoyed. "What are you talking about?" He asked her.

"Ric has feelings for you, Damon." Bonnie replied softly and Damon looked _stunned_. "He punched you because he thought you'd figured out that he had feelings for you and you were mocking him for it." She explained and Damon was thoroughly shocked. "He's been a total mess since you left." She revealed softly and Damon glanced at the ground as he considered everything she said.

"I don't know how you expect me to respond to that." Damon mumbled awkwardly and Bonnie let her spell go as she saw that he wasn't remotely angry anymore and he slumped against the wall then straightened up a little.

"I don't expect anything except that you talk to him. He's at the Cumberland Inn & Suites. He doesn't know that I ditched him to talk to you first." She said and he looked surprised. "Regardless what your response is to what I told you, you need to talk to him because he's a depressed mess without you. If you want him in return, you have to tell him that, if not, then you have to tell him that so that he can move on because he can't just stop living because of you and he _has_ done that." She cautioned seriously and Damon swallowed guiltily. She stepped up to Damon then and stared him in the eyes. "And I wasn't trying to make an enemy out of you in Mystic Falls. I was trying to help you fix things with your best friend." She glared at him and he sighed.

"Sorry." He muttered under his breath and she gave him a smirk.

"You drive me nuts but surprisingly, I care a lot about you." She said and he gave her a small smile. "Go talk to him, Damon. Just be honest. He deserves a conversation." She pointed out and he rolled his eyes.

"Fine." He muttered.

"Room 138." She told him and he nodded.

"Stay for dinner. Stefan's gone to raid a blood bank for me but he'll be back soon." Damon offered and she nodded.

"Okay." She agreed.

"Door's open. Plenty of booze and other drinks inside. Help yourself." He motioned to the front door.

"Just…" She started as she thought about how to word it and he gave her an expectant look.

"Just what?" He pushed.

"He loves you, Damon." Bonnie declared softly and Damon's eyes widened disbelieving. "Just, go easy on him." She pleaded and Damon saw a glint in her eye that displayed that she was really worried about Alaric so he'd clearly been really upset and that made Damon's heart wrench uncomfortably. Damon gave her a small nod then disappeared in a blink and Bonnie heard the sound of Damon's car start less than a second later. She smiled softly then wandered into the small house to get herself a drink.

* * *

><p>Damon walked into the hotel and was surprised to see Alaric at the reception desk arguing with the receptionist. Damon listened and heard that Ric was complaining about them not telling him whether or not Bonnie had left her key there as it was one of those hotels that didn't allow you to take your keys with you. Damon took a deep breath then walked right up to him and stopped about two feet behind him. Damon reached out and placed his hand on Ric's shoulder and Ric spun round in surprise and his eyes widened to saucers seeing Damon just standing there as he took his arm back.<p>

"Damon." Ric said shocked.

"Ric." Damon replied.

* * *

><p>AN: Let me know what you think :)


	3. Chapter 3

I don't own The Vampire Diaries.

A/N: So, someone said that it seemed like there was no development to getting to the stage they were at last chapter and there was a point to that because I'm going to show their development through flashbacks which starts in this chapter. By the end of the story, getting to where they're at in the present timeline will make sense. I really don't think that they're out of character like another person said but that's just me I guess.

Also, this chapter is dedicated to** DamnWhoopsIMeantDamon** for the last review because it made me grin like a mad woman! :D I very much hope that you like this chapter :)

I will try to get on top of my other D/A stories asap. I've just been a little lost for inspiration considering the sacrilege that is The Vampire Diaries show and the worst decision in the history of time to kill off Alaric. So what if Jeremy can still talk to Ghost Alaric? I don't care about Jeremy/Alaric bonding!

The Damon/Alaric bromance was what made the show for me considering Damon was my favourite character and he's just a whipped and pathetic Elena doormat now.

And I like Damon/Bonnie _friendship _but what was with all of the Damon/Bonnie scenes the last few episodes? It's probably foreshadowing for the inevitable Damon/Bonnie screwing that's likely to happen next season.

Ugh. Think I'll stick to fanfiction because I'm fed up with Elena. I really see nothing special about her at all, yet Damon, Stefan, Matt and Elijah all have feelings for her? She strung Damon & Matt along, she lied to Elijah's face and was in a plan to kill him and she loves Stefan, right? Bull. If she loved him so much, she wouldn't have made out with Damon up against a wall - she only stopped because Jeremy showed up. She's a nasty piece of work and they're all stupid for letting her walk all over them.

End of rant. I'm sorry, just had to get it out.

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><p>Untitled<p>

Chapter 3

* * *

><p><em><span>Flashback<span>_

* * *

><p><em>It was Christmas Day. Ric had breakfast and hot cocoa with Elena and Jeremy, they exchanged gifts and it was surprisingly normal – though, Ric felt out of place. He'd gotten Jeremy art supplies, Elena a gorgeous photo album and they got him a joint present of a sweater and an old book that Jeremy came across at the book store that they thought that he would like.<em>

_And he did. He appreciated the thought and he did enjoy spending time with them but something just wasn't right. They weren't __**his**__ kids. They weren't __**his **__family. They didn't need him and in all honesty, he didn't need them either. He'd always thought that family needed each other. _

_Although they were there… he'd never felt more alone. It was days like Christmas that he missed Isobel because when they'd been married, the pain of losing his parents and sister in a fire was lessened because he wasn't alone. After the gift exchange, Jeremy took off up to his room to draw and Stefan came over to spend time with Elena, so Ric was alone again._

_He contemplated the fact that Damon was probably alone at the boarding house too. They'd been getting along better, but Ric hadn't gone over for a drink with him since the neck-snapping incident. It wasn't that he didn't want to, because he really did… it's that he'd felt so betrayed. Damon had been his rock all summer after Jenna's death, he thought that the vampire truly cared about him… but then he did that. Ric had started to feel less alone because he had Damon – but then Damon sent him back to the emptiness of a lonely existence with one quick snap of Ric's neck._

_Ric sat watching TV bored out of his mind all afternoon. He could hear Jeremy's music blaring, Elena was giggling in her room with Stefan and Ric couldn't stop thinking about going over to the boarding house. At just after 4.30pm there was a tiny noise outside the front door. Ric's curiosity was peaked, so he stood up and walked over to the door then opened it and didn't see anyone there. He was about to close the door when he noticed a black bottle bag sitting on the welcome mat. He picked it up and looked at the gift card and it said simply 'Ric'._

_He was surprised but he took it into the house and closed the door. He walked back over to the couch and sat down then took the tape off the top and opened the bag. He pulled out a wrapped bottle and inside the bag was a small envelope. He set the wrapped bottle down next to him and opened the envelope. Inside was a small note. He turned it over and read:_

I am truly sorry.

I give you my word that I will never do it again.

Please forgive me.

_Ric stared at the small note knowing who it was from. There was only one person that it could be from. He got his apology and more. He opened up the wrapped bottle and found a 1938 sealed bottle of Old Forester Bourbon. Ric stared at the bottle in shock. He'd once drunkenly told Damon that his grandfather had let him try that one time and it had been the best drink that he'd ever had. His grandfather had left him a couple of bottles when he died but they were long gone and Ric had never been able to find another bottle though he'd searched and searched for one._

_Ric had been worried that Damon didn't care, but this proved that he did. The fact that he remembered how important to him that drink was, that he'd clearly searched for it to give it as a gift… Ric tried not to get emotional over it but it was futile because it meant a lot to him. He took the small note and put it inside of his wallet then grabbed the bottle, car keys and his jacket and hurried down to his car._

* * *

><p><em>Damon was sitting in front of the fireplace staring into it. He didn't care about Christmas or birthdays or other holidays, so that's not what the thing with Ric was about. He'd been watching something on TV and someone said that it was about showing that you care.<em>

_That's when it finally hit him. Ric thought that he didn't care. He wasn't one for admitting when he was wrong. In all honesty, he really didn't care if he was wrong 99% of the time. But this time, he knew that he was wrong and it tore him up that he'd hurt his one friend. He'd racked his brain to think of something that he could do to prove it because just trying to talk to Ric as they had before wasn't working. He missed his friend. The one ally he'd had._

_Before Ric, it had never bothered him much to be alone. He'd spent decades alone. Even when he was human, he was never one for a lot of friends or company. But after Ric, being alone was finally __**lonely**__. He missed the banter, the camaraderie, the trust, the company. He missed having someone to talk to. He missed having someone that he could sit in silence with knowing that there was someone there – someone who __**wanted **__to be there. He knew that he'd seriously messed up and he genuinely wished that he could take it back. _

_The reason that he hadn't apologised before was because he'd been hurt that Ric took sides against him that day. But then he realised that Ric hadn't been taking sides against him… Ric had been trying to look out for him considering Damon didn't always make wise decisions and snapping never helped him and Ric knew that. Damon had felt so desolate without Ric. The time apart had shown Damon just how ingrained the teacher had become in his life._

_When he heard the car pull up, his eyes widened. He genuinely had not expected Ric to show up at the boarding house as he hadn't for months. His almost non-existent pulse quickened and he was personally surprised at his body's reaction to the thought of seeing Ric. He'd have to think about that one later. He was a little worried that Ric would just return the gift and tell him to buzz off. Well, if that happened – Damon knew that he would deserve it._

_He hurried to the door and listened to the footsteps heading towards him through the door. He listened to Ric take a deep breath then he heard the knock. He waited several seconds before opening the door. The door swung open and he looked at Ric in curiosity waiting for whatever he wanted to say. Ric watched him in return as Damon's expression was blank – though, Ric knew that expression. Ric knew that Damon was braced for a bad reaction._

"_So… I was given this bottle of Old Forester and being stuck in a house with two teenagers and one eternal teenager isn't my idea of a good time. Want to get drunk?" Ric smirked and Damon understood that Ric accepted his apology and he nodded. He was so pleased! He got his friend back! Things could go back to normal and he swore to every culture's God that he could think of that he would never ever hurt Ric ever again._

"_I'm half way there. Get in." Damon smirked back. They both understood without having to say it. So, Ric went in._

* * *

><p><span>Present<span>

* * *

><p>"Uh… what are you doing here?" Ric examined confused at the sight of Damon standing there in the lobby of his hotel.<p>

"Bonnie showed up at Stefan's lake house. She said that you want to talk." Damon replied calmly and Ric looked highly uncomfortable all of a sudden as he'd planned to have the whole drive to psych himself up for this particular conversation.

"Uh… yeah." Ric confirmed with a nod trying to stay relatively coherent.

"So talk." Damon encouraged and Ric looked a little confused.

"Here?" Ric asked sceptically and Damon smirked.

"So shy." Damon jested with a mocking glint in his eye and Ric's stomach fluttered a little because he'd missed Damon's teasing. "You have a room, don't you?" Damon cocked an eyebrow and Ric gulped a little at the thought of being alone with Damon in a hotel room.

"Uh… yeah." Ric nodded then Damon motioned to the hall leading towards the rooms. Ric walked in that direction and Damon followed him – Damon was kind of amused by how hard and fast Ric's heart was beating. Ric fumbled with his room key for a moment and Damon tried not to smirk at how nervous he was. Damon couldn't help enjoying that Ric was so affected by him – though, he was glad that Ric didn't have vampire hearing or he would have heard Damon's own heartbeat escalating. Ric managed to get the door opened then they went in. Damon casually walked around the room while Ric stood in the middle of the room with his back to the door.

"What do you want to talk about?" Damon inquired not meeting Ric's eyes as he picked up a magazine that was on the table and absently flipped through it trying his best to stay detached.

"I'm sorry that I punched you. I shouldn't have reacted that way." Ric started and Damon swallowed – he was _so _not good with the feelings crap, so as much as he was putting on the cool front, internally he was feeling just as awkward as Ric was. They never normally talked things to death, so it was weird that they were clearly going to.

"Why did you?" Damon probed quietly wanting to hear it from Ric.

"Didn't Bonnie tell you?" Ric tested and Damon looked up at him finally and arched an eyebrow at him.

"I'm disregarding everything that Bonnie said." Damon stated and Ric sighed.

"I thought that you were mocking me." Ric admitted and Damon shot him a stern look.

"Teasing you about you being a grumpy alcoholic teacher or whatever is one thing, Ric." Damon responded annoyed. "That… Even I wouldn't do _that_. Not to you." He added and Ric crossed his arms over his chest but not defensively, more because he wasn't really sure what to say to that. Ric didn't say anything else for well over a minute and Damon frowned. "So is that it? Sorry for punching me? You flew all the way to Wisconsin for that?" He questioned and Ric didn't say anything because he was just _so _nervous. How the hell do you tell Damon Salvatore that you have feelings for him? "Fine. Later, Ric." Damon muttered irritated then started to walk towards the door to leave.

"Wait." Ric bid reluctantly and Damon turned around and crossed his arms over his chest and shot him a glare.

"Well?" Damon asked. "Why the hell did you follow me all the way here if you're not going to say anything?" He prodded annoyed and Ric sighed.

"You clearly already know, so, can't we just go back to being friends and forget about it?" Ric put forward and Damon's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Ric wanted to be _friends_? What?

"I clearly know _what_?" Damon pushed.

"Dammit, Damon. Cut the crap." Ric retorted aggravated.

"Pot. Kettle." Damon quipped.

"Fine." Ric said annoyed. "As much as I like being friends with you, I can't deny that I want more than that." He confessed and Damon's eyes narrowed. "But, I don't want to lose you, so I'd rather be friends than nothing." He added without looking into Damon's eyes and Damon watched him quietly for a moment while he assessed that. Then Ric was surprised when in a blink he was pinned to the wall with Damon holding him against the wall with his hands flat against Ric's chest. Ric was a little shocked when Damon's whites went blood shot, the dark veins appeared under his ice blue eyes and two perfect and sharp fangs appeared in Damon's mouth, poking out from under his top lip. Damon had _never _vamped out on him… Ric wasn't afraid at all – but he _was _trying to suppress how turned on he felt in that moment because he thought that Damon was particularly hot all vamped out like that. Damon stared into Ric's eyes as if calculating if he was for real or not.

"This is what I am." Damon cautioned him. "I've killed hundreds, maybe thousands of people, that list will grow the longer that I live. I do stupid things. I'm reckless and irresponsible. There will always be darkness surrounding me and I will never change for anyone." Damon declared and Ric stared into his eyes.

"Why are you telling me that?" Ric asked confused. "I already know that." He stated and Damon watched him for a moment.

"I'm just making sure that you know." Damon affirmed.

"Why?" Ric probed and Damon sighed and just bit the bullet.

"Because I can't be with you if you expect me to be something that I'm not." Damon professed and Ric's jaw fell open at what he was sure that he just heard. Damon really did say that… right? He had to check.

"Did you just say…" Ric trailed off then Damon pushed him tighter against the wall.

"I'm the forever type, Ric." Damon cut him off.

"What do you mean?" Ric asked.

"I mean that this is your out. If you want _me_, it means eventually becoming a vampire. It means that if you're serious about this then you have to be all _in _because I don't do things by halves." Damon warned and Ric's stomach was full of butterflies because he _never _expected this reaction. He wondered briefly if he was dreaming because he'd imagined scenarios similar to this a thousand times. He wanted Damon so badly. Ric lifted his arms from where they rested at his sides and gently placed his hands on Damon's waist and the vampire cocked an eyebrow at him for the sudden contact.

"Believe me." Ric smirked. "I'm all in." He promised and Damon took a kind of long breath as he processed the fact Ric truly accepted him in entirety and wanted him anyway.

"Are you sure?" Damon tested still not breaking his cold front and Ric understood why Damon was reluctant to reveal his emotions as Ric had been too. Both had been hurt multiple times and if this was really happening – it would only hurt more if one of them wasn't serious.

"Well, you're a dick." Ric started amused and Damon scowled at him for that comment. "But I guess it helps that I love you despite that." He admitted and Damon's stomach fluttered and he couldn't help the smirk that appeared on his face.

"You love me, huh?" Damon teased though Ric could tell that Damon was internally very affected by that, so he wasn't put off by his mockery.

"See? You're a dick." Ric replied amused.

"Fuck you." Damon countered with a smirk.

"You would." Ric jibed and Damon arched his brow at that response and looked kind of devious all at once.

"I'm planning to." Damon quipped then heard Ric's heartbeat quicken with lust which only made a Cheshire grin slowly appear on Damon's face. "Mmm." He hummed seductively while leaning down to Ric's neck. "Your heartbeat tells me that you liked that comment." Damon purred as he took a big whiff from Ric's neck and Ric tried not to shudder. Ric figured 'what the hell?', so he pulled Damon flush against him soliciting a small chuckle from Damon because he didn't expect Ric to be forceful at _all_ – though Ric could feel that Damon was just as turned on. Damon's body was fully pressed up against Ric's and Damon pulled his face up to look into Ric's eyes. Their faces were only inches apart and both had lust-glazed eyes.

"Well?" Ric asked him a bit unevenly not understanding why they were dancing around it.

"Nuh-uh. Your move. Didn't go so well for me last time." Damon snarked and Ric rolled his eyes.

"And you say that _I _hold onto things." Ric retorted and Damon smirked – vampire face still out.

"Touché." Damon replied amused.

"Oh, shut up." Ric said exasperated then moved his hand up to the back of Damon's head and crashed his lips to the vampire's…

* * *

><p>AN: Let me know what you think :)


End file.
